In here, life is beautiful | Our visit to the Kit Kat Club

Wilkommen to our first blog post!

After deciding to start this little project, we were very excited to have a new excuse to go to the theatre together. However, neither of us expected the chance to see the latest critically acclaimed Cabaret revival. I'm not a huge believer in fate or anything like that, but the morning after our page was created, a good friend of ours won the Cabaret ticket lottery for that evening and it felt pretty perfect.

To be honest, we were both very nervous to see this production as the marketing shows it to be very freaky and raunchy and, of course immersive. I (Gaby) personally am not a big audience interaction fan so this made me very scared but as an avid theatre fan, when a ticket for a production like this appears, you have to take it.

So, we got ourselves ready and headed over to the Kit Kat Club, formerly the Playhouse Theatre, at Northumberland Avenue. Neither of us had never been to the Playhouse before it became the club, but we can't imagine it looked anything like it does now. From what we've seen online, the way you enter used to be a backstage area so you go through all these corridors with neon lights and art prints on the walls before you enter the red bar. On your way in, everyone can collect a shot of schnapps but we were so excited and nervous we walked straight past which we regret a lot haha. Top tip, if you find yourself at Cabaret, don't miss the hatch on your right as you walk in! At the first bar, this is where a few of the performers will be dancing and playing instruments right there in the bar area, they truly are amazing performers and you can't miss them. Then we headed up to the second bar which is likely where the original bar was. Again, there were more incredible performers about but this area was very crowded so feel free to move about the space. At that point, you can head into your seat and the performers are starting to make their way to the stage too. It really is an incredible, immersive pre-show experience like nothing else we've ever seen.

The actual show is possibly the best piece of theatre we've ever seen. Every 5 star review we've watched and read is absolutely correct. The set, costume, lighting, acting, singing, dancing and everything else blends together to create this lavish, yet morbid and creepy, aesthetic that throws you right into the centre of the mayhem of the 1930s Berlin club scene.

Gaby's Theatre Thoughts: As someone who grew up as a dancer, I want to take a minute to discuss the choreography which I found absolutely mesmerising. Of course, there are Fosse-like elements to the movement that pay homage to the classic choreography of the original show in a stunning way. However, the entire piece contains contemporary elements and a mix of both classic and contemporary musical theatre jazz. The whole thing was truly beautiful. Honourable mention of course to Scott-Howells who was incredible in the role of the Emcee. I'm a big fan of It's a Sin so was very excited to catch him in this and was truly obsessed with his performance.

Josie's Theatre Thoughts: I was always a singer first as a performer and this show is so impressive vocally. Firstly, Callum Scott-Howells (fellow Welsh person!) is so talented it's insane. As Emcee he had the perfect balance of eeriness and fun, the tones in his voice throughout were captivating and when he came onto the stage we knew it would be something special. Madelaine Brewer's rendition of Cabaret left me stunned, to be able to throw the thought of 'sounding pretty' out the window and deliver such pure emotion is a skill I haven't seen replicated in any other show. P.S. if you have seats at the cabaret tables be prepared for some serious immersion! I ended up being way more involved than I thought, if you're curious then you'll have to visit the KitKat Club yourself! ;)

The cast as a whole ensemble were amazing. We were lucky enough to see Callum Scott-Howells as Emcee and Madeleine Brewer as Sally Bowles. It was Brewer's performance that neither of us could stop thinking about. One of the key factors about this revival is the reinvention of the character of Sally. She is now visibly broken by life at the club by the end of the play and her drinking and smoking isn't at all glamorised throughout. Brewer gives a truly disturbing and heart wrenching performance that is both difficult to watch yet morbidly addictive. She is a phenomenal performer and we feel elated to have seen her in this part. Big shout out to Callum Scott-Howells who's acting was so wonderful throughout, he did such a wonderful job at bewitching the audience, he had us at the edge of our seats!

Finally, it is important to say that we are students and we do want to focus on how to see the best of the West End on a budget. We can confidently say that we could not have seen this show without getting lucky with the TodayTix lottery. Ticket lotteries are a super cool way to get insane deals on tickets so make sure you have the app and enter them regularly if there's something you're desperate to see.

We have to give Cabaret 5 stars. It is one of the best revivals the West End has seen in recent years. I genuinely haven't been able to stop thinking about it since.

Written by Josie and Gaby x